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Volunteers thanked for Big Windermere Survey

Love Windermere Event at Jetty Museum Saturday 23rd September 2023
25th September 2023

Around 80 ‘citizen scientist’ volunteers attended an event arranged by the Freshwater Biological Association to say thanks for taking part the Big Windermere Survey.

Held at Windermere Jetty overlooking the lake, visitors heard how 2,500 samples had been taken involving 300 volunteers who collectively had donated 1,000 hours of time. 600 litres of the lake have also been taken away for analysis during the project.

Dr Ben Surridge of Lancaster University at the Big Windermere Survey event at the Jetty Museum held on Saturday 23rd September 2023

Launched jointly by the Freshwater Biological Association (FBA) and Lancaster University, the Big Windermere Survey recruited a team of local volunteers to help assess the environmental health of Windermere.

Citizen scientists are trained to collect water samples from approximately 100 different locations on Windermere and in the rivers and lakes that flow into it. The samples are analysed for nutrient and bacterial concentrations at independent laboratories, producing the largest, one-day snapshot of conditions in Windermere.

The Big Windermere Survey has completed four rounds of surveys representing a full year’s worth of data spanning the four seasons. A detailed report is due out later this year.